When you hear the words ‘endangered species’, I’m betting animals like Piping Plover and Monarch Butterflies – or maybe Elephants and Tigers – spring to mind. But there are endangered plants too, including the lovely and edible Butternut (Juglans cinerea).
Butternut is native to eastern North America (including southern Ontario and Quebec, and southwestern New Brunswick) but is considered introduced here on PEI. In my younger days, I held out hope that I’d find some wild trees, knowing that the 1881 census reported 5,001 feet of ‘soft walnut’ (another name for Butternut) being produced here. On a couple of occasions, I came across what I thought might be native trees, only to find upon further research that they marked the spots of old homesteads.
Given the importance of Butternut as a food source for Indigenous people and later European settlers, along with its utility as wood for cabinet making and furniture, there would have been more mention of it had it been here. While it’s not native on the Island, you can find planted Butternut trees in all three counties.
Butternut is closely related to Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) which is also found in our region, including here on PEI. These trees are often mistaken for each other, but there are some key differences.
Butternut fruits are oblong rather than round and are covered in sticky hairs (Photo 1). Its large, compound leaves are opposite and have a leaflet at the tip (Photo 2); Black Walnut leaves are alternate and usually lack that terminal leaflet (if it’s there, it will be smaller than the others). The bark of young Butternut is grey and smooth (Photo 3), becoming ridged as the tree ages.
Inside that hairy, sticky fruit is a shell that looks a bit like a Walnut, but with jagged ridges and a sharp point on one end (Photo 4). Inside that is the tasty nut (Photo 5). The flavour is smooth and rich, reminiscent of a Walnut but milder and creamier. Unlike some of our other wild nuts, Butternuts don’t need any processing and are delicious straight from the tree.
I remove Butternuts from outer hull (the hairy, sticky part), let them dry for about two weeks, and then gently crack open the shells with a hammer to get the nut meat. If you’re lucky, the nut will come out intact and you’ll see its lovely shape, keeled like a boat hull. I’m not that skilled in Butternut extraction yet, and mine come out in (equally delicious) pieces.
The green hulls of Butternut can be boiled, strained, and used to dye wool (in the same way as Walnut hulls), and produce colours ranging from yellow-orange to caramel to grey. They can also be steeped in alcohol, strained, and sweetened with syrup or sugar to make a variation on Nocino.
Unfortunately, Butternut trees are susceptible to Butternut Canker – a non-native, fatal fungal disease that has infected more than 90% of Butternuts in some areas. It was first detected in the US in 1967, had reached Canada by 1990, and is now present in Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick. This is the main threat to Butternut, and a key reason for its listing as endangered. While there is no known cure, work is underway to find disease-resistant trees that may hold the key to the future of this species.
Because Butternut is an endangered species in Canada and some US States, it’s illegal to harm the trees or even possess the nuts in some areas. PEI is outside the native range of Butternut, so those restrictions don’t apply here. We are also fortunate to be outside the range of Butternut Canker – for now, at least. If you are within the native range of Butternut, please be sure to learn about the regulations in your Province or State before heading out to collect the nuts (or any other part of this tree).
Butternut is a lovely landscape tree useful to both wildlife and people, and one I would plant despite its non-native status. It’s unusual and distinctive – worth keeping an eye out for as you explore PEI untamed!
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